The initial engineering plan for improvements to South Three Notch has been submitted to the state Department of Transportation, the Andalusia City Council was told Tuesday.

In 2013, the city received an $8.6 million grant to rework all of South Three Notch. The project will be managed by ALDOT, which must now approve the plans.

“Everybody’s applications and plans were turned in at same time,” Mayor Earl Johnson explained. “It is going to be overwhelming for the DOT staff to do it. This is going to be a long, involved process.”

Construction is expected to begin in the fall, and will interrupt traffic. But already, plans are in place to maintain access to health care facilities.

That’s important to Councilman Terry Powell, who also chairs the hospital board.

“It has been a real concern that access to the hospitals and to the medical facilities could potentially be blocked at times,” Powell said. “I spoke with the engineers Friday. When they’re working on the two outer lanes, the inner lanes will be open, and vice versa. There will always be two lanes open. On behalf of the hospital and medical community, we appreciate that.”

Johnson said, “It has always been a big issue with us, that the hospital access would not at any time get blocked.”

There is only one portion of the road where work will complete close the road, and that is at West Watson and the railroad track, he said.

In other road business, the city has been notified that the ALDOT will resurface Stanley Avenue from town to the bypass in March.

A preliminary agenda circulated to the media early this week included discussion of a possible annexation, which Johnson said was requested by property owners who want to be brought into the corporate limits.

“That was actually prematurely placed on the agenda and is not ready to be acted on,” Johnson said. “We need to do some more groundwork before we bring it to the council.”